When talking about design professions, we are mostly familiar with architects, interior designers, and landscape architects. But when industrial design is mentioned, most of us scratch our heads and ask: “Industrial-style design?” “Interior designers who do industrial-style design?” “Industrial engineers?”

Judging from these comments and questions, industrial design could be one of most misunderstood design professions in this country. But being mistaken as an offshoot of fine arts or architecture or engineering, we wouldn’t have (or be able to do) many things without industrial design. Because without industrial designers, we wouldn’t have cars, bikes, wheelchairs, toys, mobile phones, chairs, makeup containers, Coca Cola bottles, and even take-out packages from fast food stores. Yes, a world without industrial designers would be a difficult (and inefficient) world, indeed.

In a nutshell, industrial design is the process, conceptualization, and applied design of all types of products—and this could mean, literally, almost everything we touch, use, and see in our daily lives. In a very informative video by the World Design Organization, industrial design is described simply as “the creation of things…objects, processes, and even services.”

IMAGE Ocs Alvarez

The truth is, we need industrial designers in our lives. Thankfully, many universities in the country offer industrial design courses, including The University of Santo Tomas, De La Salle-College of St. Benilde School of Design and the Arts, and the University of the Philippines. President of the National Council of Industrial Designers of the Philippines and Benilde School of Design and the Arts faculty Rino Datuin says the industrial design educators’ main objective is “…to produce global designers, home-grown talents who can excel even if they’re far away [from the Philippines] and who can work alongside designers from other countries whether here or abroad.”

IMAGE Ocs Alvarez

An industrial designer has the combined skills of a designer, visual artist, researcher, and engineer. Knowing this makes us have so much respect for those in this field! So let's celebrate World Industrial Design Day, and watch the World Design Organization’s video here:

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Photos are from the De La Salle-College of St. Benilde School of Design and the Arts industrial design students’ exhibit held in 2011.